A magnetic recording layer of a magnetic recording medium, such as an audiotape, a videotape, and a floppy disc, contains a high content (coated amount) of magnetic substance, which results in lack of light-permeability, even though high magnetic output (reading) capability can be attained. Consequently, the above-described magnetic recording layer techniques cannot be applied, as it is, onto the printing surface of a magnetic card or onto a photographic film. U.S. Pat. No. 5,491,051 describes photographic elements that exhibit excellent magnetic and photographic characteristics, and that are capable of repeated use.
A difficulty, however, arises for these photographic elements. That is, the photographic elements are not satisfactorily reliable in recording or reading of incorporated magnetic recording various information when incorporated magnetic recorded information is used repeatedly or used as conditions for development or printing. Such incorporated magnetic recording information utilized includes the date of photographing, weather, conditions for illumination, conditions at the time of photographing (e.g. the ratio of reduction to enlargement), the number of leaves for reprinting, an area to be zoomed, and some messages. Further, transparent magnetic layer-related techniques are described in JP-A-4-214217 ("JP-A" means unexamined published Japanese patent application), JP-A-6-161033, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,496,687, 5,432,050, 5,436,120, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,434,037.
Practically, for example, when a transparent magnetic recording medium is also given a function as a photographic element (photographic light-sensitive material), dirt substances (hereinafter referred to as dirt) easily deposit on a magnetic head. The dirt is mainly composed of a dried solid of the developing solution, and it is very adhesive to things. The above-described adhesive dirt, which is not usually formed for an ordinary magnetic recording medium, becomes adhered to and deposits on a magnetic head from the medium, to make the precise contact of a magnetic layer with the head considerably deteriorated. Further, so-called spacing loss occurs by the dirt, which results in an error in reading of the magnetic recorded information. Even if alumina abrasives, which are used for an ordinary magnetic recording medium, are used to clean the head dirtied, the dried solid of the developing solution cannot be sufficiently prevented from adhering onto the magnetic head in a conventional method. Further, when the amount of the alumina abrasives to be used is increased, or a larger particle of alumina abrasives is used, a new problem arises. Dirt-removal is not improved sufficiently, and undesirably the transparency of the medium extremely decreases, which is disadvantageous to photographic use, and the life (duration) of the magnetic head is drastically shortened.
Further, in order to remove deposited dirt owing to dried-up ingredients of a developing solution, it is known to coat an overcoat solution containing particles onto the surface of a magnetic recording medium. In this case, in order to incorporate spherical particles in the overcoat solution and to hold them in a magnetic recording layer as an underlayer (i.e. a layer below the overcoat layer), it is necessary to incorporate, in the overcoat solution, a solvent that is able to dissolve the underlayer. However, at the time of coating the overcoat solution, interaction (aggregation) between a binder, which is dissolved into the solvent out of the underlayer, and a lubricant wax dispersion incorporated in the overcoat solution, occurs, and consequently the state of coated surface deteriorates. Particularly, in order to sufficiently bury spherical particles into the underlayer, it is necessary to increase the ratio of the solvent employed to dissolve the underlayer, but the tendency of occurrence of such as the above-mentioned problems is becoming stronger. Thus, if the state of coated surface deteriorates, not only is the appearance of the product made worse, but also contact (hit) with a magnetic head becomes uneven, so that fundamental characteristics (electromagnetic conversion characteristics) of the magnetic recording medium are affected badly. Accordingly, there is a need to improve the above-mentioned problems.